New airport mulled after Naia runway mishap

Stranded passengers wait for their flight at the NAIA Terminal 1 after Chinese passenger plane Xiamen Airlines overshot its landing before midnight on Thursday. Several flights were canceled and diverted due to the closure of runway 06/24 until noon on Saturday.
INQUIRER/ MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

An official of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) said the Chinese plane mishap at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) signals the need for a new airport in the country.

MIAA General Manager Eddie Monreal told Radyo Inquirer on Monday that the Naia, which has the only international runway in the country, is already at its full capacity and will soon be worn-out.

“The best way is to develop an airport for the future that has the biggest capacity in terms of development, in terms of building the capacity for the runway,” he said.

“Highly important na magkaroon na po tayo ng airport gaya ng ibang bansa na medyo malayo sa city (It is highly important for us to have an airport away from the city like in other countries),” Monreal explained.

Thousands of passengers have been stranded at Naia after the Xiamen Air Flight MF8667 skidded off the runway Thursday night, which caused several international and local flights to be cancelled and delayed.

Airport authorities earlier said the affected 06/24 runway is where most international flights go through.

It took over 36 hours to remove the airplane from the runway, which airport authorities blamed to the rain-soaked grassy area and the bad weather during recovery operations.

Senator JV Ejercito also earlier called for a twin airport system in the country between Clark and Naia, which he said will be like Haneda and Narita airports in Tokyo. /je

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